Series of English Skill (Part 1 – March 28, 2023)
Based on the 2022 VDMI Student Monitoring System (SMS) result, there were five top challenges faced by VDMI grantees, one of them is English. Therefore, to open the online capacity building program in 2023, VDMI committed to equip grantees and alumni with the basic knowledge of English and give them the chance to practice their English in the Series of English Skill “Why should we speak English?”. This series has facilitated by Ersa Izmi Safitri (alumna Swadaya Gunung Jati University and now as an English Teacher at English’s Friend). The series was held on March 28, 2023 (part 1 – Speaking “Introduce Yourself”); April 4, 2023 (part 2 – Speaking “Discussing Opinions”); April 11, 2023 (part 3 – Writing “Sentences About You”) and April 18, 2023 (part 4 – Writing “Unforgettable Experiences). Every part starts at 1 pm up to 3 pm by Zoom meeting. There are 40 participants that commit to join this series (Part 1 – Part 4) continuously.
Part I was about speaking and how to introduce ourselves. Nowadays, communicating in English is a necessity for everyone. English is a window to the world that will open up new opportunities when we interact with other people from all over the world. Speaking in English is a basic skill that can be trained and requires fluency. Fluency related to our physical and mental readiness. Physically, our mouth could produce and connect to English sounds and words in a fast smooth way. Mentally, our brain needs to find the right words and build sentences quickly and smoothly. Speaking in English must identify contexts and places, because we use different sentences when we are in formal and informal places. Formal places include the context of universities, offices, seminars and scientific meetings. Meanwhile, casual or informal places usually occur among peers, in the home or at parties. When introducing yourself in formal places, you can start by saying: “good morning/ good afternoon/ good evening”. Later on, proceed with introducing yourself. In informal or casual places, we can start a conversation by using the words “Hey”, “Hi”, or “What’s up?”, before we introduce ourselves. To greet somebody we know, we also use different expressions in formal and informal places. For example: “How are you today?” can be used in formal places; and “How’s it going” can be used in informal places. When we want to say goodbye in formal places we can use: “I must be on my way”, or “Give my regards to your wife”. Meanwhile, we can say “See you” or “Say hello to … for me” to say goodbye to somebody in informal places.
When talking to other people, we also need to pay attention to the three rules to not to be a dry speaker. Those are: 1). initiate; 2). elaborate; and 3). reciprocate. Initiate is a prefix to start a conversation. At the beginning, build short, interesting and exciting conversations. On the other hand, don’t ask about sensitive matters such as political views, religions, age or marital status. Therefore, we can elaborate the conversation by explaining further about what you mean. At the end, we can reciprocate by giving a genuine response or giving follow up questions.
At the Q&A session, Elisa Enjeli Simanullang (grantee Palangka Raya University) shared her experience when making a conversation with someone else and didn’t get any feedback, although she already used the three rules to avoid a dry conversation. First thing first, we can clarify their understanding about the conversation. It could be that they are not interested in the topic of conversation. If they show no interest in the topic, then we can change it, and find another topic that is more engaging. If we have tried and there is still no positive feedback from the person we are talking to, then find another partner to talk to and keep applying the three rules that have been mentioned.
